


How Things Change

by Unholy_Author



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Blackwatch Gabe, Blackwatch Jesse McCree, Overwatch Jesse, Relationship Developement, Talon Reaper, Time Skips, father/son relationship, pre and post recall
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-11
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-14 09:41:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8008531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unholy_Author/pseuds/Unholy_Author
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fic following the relationship between Jesse and Gabe as they go through important moments in their lives because I really love the idea that Gabe was like a dad to Jesse and there were just so many possibilities.</p>
            </blockquote>





	How Things Change

**Author's Note:**

> I do not speak Spanish. Not even a bit. I tried to limit the actual Spanish so I wouldn't embarrass myself too badly but if you see any mistakes in the little words I used please tell me so I can fix it!
> 
> Ideas? Prompts? Aus you want to see happen? Hit me up! You can leave it in the comments or send an ask to Caitninja on tumblr.

Jesse glanced around the room a bit self-consciously as he sat down at an empty metal table. The others were looking at him, he just knew it. What kind of people would they be if they weren’t? He kept his back straight and postured confident. He would not let them see him as weak.

Jesse wanted food, after the long day of training with this new team of his he really needed to eat something, but his tightly clenched stomach forbade it. Instead he played with his lighter, flipping it open and shut and occasionally flicking it on to watch the flame dance. His little game was interrupted when a man sat down across from him and Jesse heard whispers start up near him. He slowly tucked his lighter away and glanced up. The man unceremoniously pushed a bowl of…something across the table at Jesse and went right to eating.

“Commander Reyes.” Jesse acknowledged slowly. It was easy to recognize the man that had convinced him to take the deal that would keep him out of jail, but not nearly so easy to understand why he was there.

“Jesse.” The man replied, amusement in his voice. He looked up at the kid and raised an eyebrow. “Why aren’t you eating?” Jesse spared a glance down to the bowl and then looked back at Reyes.

“What do you want?” He deadpanned. Reyes seemed a bit taken aback by that. 

“Kid, you need to eat something.”

“Yes, and I will. But what are you trying to do and what do you want for it?” He asked again.

Reyes was suddenly reminded of the hell they’d pulled this new kid from, some gang down in New Mexico that would have sold any of their people for a few boxes of cigars. The kid certainly had a look about him that spoke of some sort of fucked up past. He had a fading black eye, fresh blood on his jaw from where he’d scratched at an old cut, and too many scars for someone that wasn’t even an adult yet.

“{Just eat the food, moron.}” Reyes rumbled in Spanish. Jesse was a bit surprised at the language change but no less pleased. He always preferred Spanish to English, anyhow.

Jesse gave him one last suspicious look before taking up the bowl and drinking out of it, forgoing the spoon Reyes tried to hand him.

“{Do you always eat like that?}” Reyes asked, mild disdain in his voice. Jesse glared at him.

“{Do you always bitch about everything?}” He countered sourly. Reyes sighed and went back to his own food. 

“{Why are you sitting with me?}” The kid asked after a few minutes. The whispers had died away but he could feel curious gazed on him. It was unnerving.

“{I eat with my soldiers. You’re under me now, so you’ll have to get used to it.}”

“{I already have a mom. No need for you to try and baby me, too.}” Jesse snapped a bit angrily. Reyes watch his fuming face for a moment and shrugged.

“{I wasn’t planning on babying you. The fact that you’re here is proof enough that you don’t need it.}”

“{Good, stay off my ass.}” This kid was going to be the death of him

~~~~~

Where was he? Gabe turned in place frantically, one hand holding the side of his head in an attempt to stop the blood flow from a cut there.

Where was he?

He didn’t see the serape. He didn’t see the gun. He didn’t see any trace of Jesse.

Where was he?

There was a groan off to Gabe’s left and he whipped around in that direction. A moment passed and the sound was replaced with a rattling, wet gasp that had his chest clenching in fear. Gabe ran the few feet to the source of the noise and pushed against a piece of concrete that was sitting on the soldier’s chest. It tumbled off and the man, no, the kid gasped with the sudden loss of pressure.

“Jesse!” Gabe yelled.

“Oh my god, stop that. My head hurts like a bitch.” Jesse grumbled before lapsing into a coughing fit that sprayed blood across his chin.

“Gabe, I don’t feel so hot.” Jesse said weakly. Gabe laughed in an almost crazed manner as he started to check Jesse over, looking for injuries. His right leg was obvious broken, twisted at a disgusting angle, and there was a good four inches of metal sticking out of his side.

“{It’s okay, it’s okay. I’m going to get you back to the medics. It’s okay.}” Gabe chanted, lapsing into their native tongue as he tried to think of the best way to move Jesse. He shouldn’t be moved. He knew that much, but he didn’t have any real choice. “I’m so sorry, this is going to hurt, mijo.” He warned before looping one hand under Jesse’s knees and the other under his arms.

“Just do it.” Jesse told him. He lifted and Jesse cried out in pain, making Gabe wince. He turned and ran as fast as he could without risking dropping Jesse on the ground as he made his way back to the hovercraft. There had to be medics there. There had to be.

Jesse coughed again and then vomited down Gabe’s chest, leaving a vile mix of stomach acid and blood all over the front of his uniform. He couldn’t find it in himself to care just then.

“MEDIC!” He screamed when he was close enough that someone might actually hear him. “MEDIC! Please for the love of god!” There were shouts from the direction of the hovercraft and Gabe felt an intense wave of relief when a pair of golden wings spread and a blonde woman soared towards the pair.

~~~~~

The med bay was always depressing for Jesse. It always reminded him of that one time he almost died. But he couldn’t exactly stay away when Gabe was there.

“Kid, if you don’t have food I’m going to send you to the grave myself.” Gabe growled the second he saw Jesse. He still had a bandage around the top half of his chest and he technically wasn’t supposed to be eating anything the medics didn’t give him but Jesse wasn’t about to test how serious Gabe was.

“{You owe me next time I’m in here.}” Jesse warned as he pulled a Tupperware container out from under his serape and handed it over along with a fork. He’d never cared much for utensils but his commander was a real stickler for being proper.

“Mijo, I owe you.” Gabe agreed as he tucked into the sloppy American version of enchiladas with a zeal Jesse had never seen before. Jesse laughed as he sat in the lone chair in the room and yawned.

“Hombre, this last mission was one hell of a ride. There’s this guy working with Overwatch and he’s some crazy cyborg ninja. It’s wicked cool.”

“You meet someone from Overwatch on a mission?” Gabe asked, pausing long enough to look up from his food, brow creased. Jesse waved a dismissive hand.

“Not one of ours. They needed an extra sharpshooter and pulled me from Blackwatch duties for a day. Nothing major.” Jesse told him. Gabe frowned slightly but didn’t say anything else as Jesse continued.

“Anyway, they’ve also got this huge German guy swinging a hammer around everywhere. Scared the shit outta me a couple o’ times ‘cause I thought he was gonna hit me instead of the actual target.”

Jesse babbled on about what he’d been up to, with interspersed sarcastic comments from his commander, until the blonde medic woman came and chased him off. 

She never did find out about the enchiladas, though.

~~~~~

Reaper knew his place in the world. He knew what had gone wrong in his life and he knew who to blame. That’s why he was on the op with Talon. That’s why he was hunting down every last Overwatch member he could find and making them pay for what they’d done and who they’d betrayed.

His steps echoed in the empty street as he made his way toward the agent that Widowmaker had just shot off a roof. He needed to make sure they were dead. His body dissolved into mist as he made his way over and he re-materialized just in front of the agent. He crouched down and tipped the face up with the tip of one of his shotguns, checking for any signs of life, and he froze.

The face was older, sure. He had a much better beard than the few wisps he insisted counted back when he was just a teenager. He had many more scars and many more wrinkles. More than a man his age should have. His left arm was gone, replaced by metal. But it was still him. It was still Jesse. It was still his mijo.

Reaper glanced around for Talon agents before shooting up into the air and pulling Jesse’s com out of his ear.

“Medic.” Was the only thing he said before he turned and teleported away. He prayed that someone from his team would find Jesse in time.

~~~~~

“I can’t.” Reaper growled. Jesse raised an eyebrow across from him while the short Brit next to Jesse just looked uncomfortable, like she wanted to leave as soon as possible.

“The hell, ya can’t. I just told ya that ya can.” Jesse said. His stupid cowboy persona had even leaked into his voice now.

“Jesse, I am not the same man. I am not even a man anymore, thanks to what Angela did to me.” Reaper spat, his anger clear. “I am not rejoining the organization that betrayed me in the first place.”

“We ain’t that way no more. We’re different. This ain’t the same Overwatch we knew before.” Jesse said.

“That’s right, love. To’ally different.” The Brit added. Reaper shifted to glare at her and even though she couldn’t see his face past the mask she shut up quickly. Jesse, as always, was unaffected.

“{Please. Please trust me.}” Jesse tried. It was a last-ditch effort and they both knew it. Nevertheless it made Reaper sigh and roll his eyes up to the ceiling.

“{Fine.}” He finally agreed. Jesse grinned so widely that Reaper entertained the idea of it literally splitting his face.

“{Good. I’ve missed working with you, you know. Missed your bitching.}”

“Well someone needs to bitch at you.” Reaper said, the English sentence without its context making the woman glance at Jesse in confusion. “But I missed you too, mijo.”

Reaper just knew this kid was going to be the death of him.


End file.
